Elimination of faller bar creep in pin drafters



June 30, 1953 J. R. LoNGsTRl-:x-:T Erm.

ELIMINATION OF FALLER BAR CREE? IN PIN DRAFTERS Filed July 50, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet l :llll l s.

INVENTORIJ- JHMEE R. LUNE-STREET RHYNHLDU HERMES d? vL h/ZZZ HTTDRNEYS June 30, 1953 .-J. R. LoNGsTRE-r ETAL 2,643,419

ELIMINATION OF' FALLER BAR CREEP IN PIN. DRAFTERS Filed July 30, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS JHMES RLUNESTREET RHYNHLDU .mmmues FIT-m RNEYS Patented June 30, 1953 ELIMINATION IOF FALLER BAR CREEP IN PIN DRAFTERS James R. Longstreet, Maple Heights, Ohio, and `Reynaldo Jacques, Uxbridge, Mass., assignors to The Warner & Swasey Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application July 30, 1948, Serial No. 41,646

2 claims. l

This invention relates to gill boxes containing pin drafting mechanism for the treatment of slivers or bers as a part of the yarn making process.

Gill boxes have been proposed wherein one or -two sets of faller bars are advanced with the sliver by cam or screw means, retracted at the end of their stroke by a rotary S-cam, returned to their starting position by lead screws of a relatively high pitch, and advanced by another S-cam to the drafting position.

With prior devices, diiiculty has been encountei-ed as the speed of the machine is increased in accordance with the modern trend of the weaving industry. When the speeds are increased, the bars and parts are damaged, they are not firmly guided during their transfer from one screw to the other and they do not enter and leave the screws properly. Accordingly, principal objects of the invention, are to increase the speed by which the faller bars may be actuated, improve the smoothness and positiveness of the shifting action, lengthenthe life of the parts, and improve the motion of the bars as they enter and leave the sliver. Briefly, these objects are accomplished by resiliently and irmlyv guiding the bars during their 'transfer from one screw to the other by guiding the bars between the specially formed end surfaces of the saddles and novel resilient fingers which press; against the bars being transferred and urge them against said saddle end surfaces; Byf providing such means as will be hereinafter described, itY is found that smooth action is attained atv increased speeds, the length ofV life of the parts is increased, and the treatment ofthe sliver is`im proved.

Another object resides in improvingrtheVv action of the falleln bar pins as they'are brought intoA con-tact with the sliver. Thisis: accomplished by having the gui-dingsurfacesy or saddles for the faller bars converge slightly towardfthe draft rolls.

The manner in whichthese and otherobjects are accomplished in a; preferred embodiment of the invention will be describedv in connection with the following guresin which- Fig. 1 is an end view ofthe apparatus Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section therethrough;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary longitudinal section;

Figs. 4 and 5 are` fragmentary sectionsthrough one of the guiding members; and

Figs. 6 and '7 are views of oneofthe faller bars.

Referring to the` drawings, the gi11V box. Il).k ine.Y

cludes several conventional elements known to those skilled in the art which will not be described in detail. These elements are the lower return screw and shaft II, the lead screw and shaft I2 for the lower set of bars, the lead screw and shaft I3 for the upper set of bars and the upperreturn screw and shaft I4. The return and lead screws are geared together for opposite rotation and the pairs of screws are also geared together for synchronism by a suitable gearing well known in the art.

S-cams i5 are provided tovv transfer the faller bars, the construction and operation of theseV As in theA cams being wel1 known in. the. art. usual construction, S-carnsy are carried at the outer ends of the lead screws to transfer the bars to the return screw, and at the other end of the apparatus S-cams are carried by the return screws to transfer the. bars to the lead screws.

In the preferred form the faller bars B are ar ranged in upper and lower sets. Support I6 guides the bars of the lower set as they are returned to the rear of the apparatus. Saddle l1 supports and guides the bars as they are advanced by the lead screw I 2 during drafting. Similarly there isv provided an upper support I8 to guide the upper set of bars during drafting' and a saddle I9 which supports them during their return. The bars engage a guide 20 at the exit end ofthe apparatus as they are withdrawn from a sliver.

Each bar member` B includesthe usual' pins 2| and is relieved as at 22y for' pin clearance between the rows of bars.V The ends of the bars' are formed with screw followers as' at 23 to ride in the screws, the followers 23 preferably being I arrangedk so thatl the bars are vertical when the followers are disposed in the lead screw that advances them fordrafting. Opposite ends of the bars are notched as at 24 to assistV in guiding them during transfer from one screw to the other as will beexplained in detail presently.

conductors 2B and 29respectively'are providedv` for the upperA set of bars.v Certainfeatures of construction arecommon tot all. conductors and will be described in'V connectionLwth finger/'26.

The fingers are pvotally mounted on the frameL of the apparatus as at 3| and carry a spring bolt 32 which mounts a spring 33 reacting against a block 34 fixed to the frame of the apparatus. A stop 35 may be provided to limit the action of the spring on the finger. The conductor or finger 26 has a straight guiding face 39 and a curved face 4U merging therewith.

The outer end of the lower saddle I'I is formed with three surfaces each having a function. First, there is a tapered surface 36 extending from the supporting surface of the saddle at an angle such that the faller bar, as it is urged along surface 3S by the S-cam, continues to advance with the sliver at the speed imparted to it by the lead screw I2. Another surface 31 is formed on the end of the saddle, this surface being generally perpendicular to the lead screw axis. The lower tapered guiding surface 38 is also provided to facilitate entry of the faller bars in the return screw. The actions of the parts just'described will now be explained. It will be understood that there is a saddle and associated conductor for each end of the bar but only one will be described.

As a terminal faller bar B reaches the end of its travel along the upper surface of saddle II, it reaches a point seen in Fig. 3 where it is about to leave the upper surface. As the lead screw l2 carries the terminal bar past the edge formed by the intersection of surfaceV 36 and the upper surface of the saddle I'I, the S-carn on the forward end of lead screw I2 begins to lower the faller bar. Initially the faller bar remains engaged in lead screw I2, but as the bar slides along saddle surface 36 a point is reached wherein the bar is no longer driven by a screw but is propelled forwardly by the inclination of surface 36 and the downward action of the S-cam.

As seen in Fig. 5 after the lower corner of the bar leaves surface 35 it is gripped between the vertical face 3'! of the saddle and the straight portion 39 of the finger so that it is -withdrawn vertically by the S-carn. The resilient pressure against the bar exerted by the finger 26 :guides it firmly and smoothly, and, as seen in Fig. 4, when the lower corner of the bar begins to ride along the curved portion 40 of the finger the bar begins to cant. The parts are arranged so that as the bar begins to enter the lower return screw it is canted to just the right angle for the follower 23 to enter the groove in the return screw. As the bar clears the saddle it is forced bodily against one face of the groove in the screw by the conductor so that the bar is positively and smoothly positioned in the screw.

Referring to the action that takes place at the other end of the apparatus wherein the bars are lifted into drafting position, it will be noted that the rear of the saddle includes a tapered face 33a, a vertical face 31a, and a sloping face 38a corresponding generally to the faces just described. As the corner of the bar reaches the tapered face 36a, an S-cam mounted on the return screw starts to lift the bar and tends to tilt it out to the vertical position. After the bar leaves the return screw II', cam surface 36a on the saddle continues the advance of the bar under action of the Scam until it is gripped between the straight face 39a of the conductor 2l and the vertical face 31a of the saddle. As the bar is lifted its follower enters the groove in the lead screw i2. The S-cam does not completely lift the bar entirely into drafting position. Rather, the lower corner thereof rides on sloping survof the saddles.

face 38a of the saddle as the lead screw advances the bar along that surface. This provides for smooth action and facilitates entry of the pins into the sliver which is better accomplished by the return screw and cam action just described than by the S-cam entirely.

It is noted that the lower saddle Il and the support I8 for the upper set of bars converge somewhat toward the drafting rolls. Thus, the edges of the bars do not initially compress the sliver but are gradually brought against the sliver to compress it somewhat as the bars are advanced along the saddles. This also facilitates entryr of the pins into the sliver as well as improves smoothness and effectiveness of the apparatus.

The sliver is drafted from the terminal pins by the usual drafting rolls and known to those skilled in the art. The construction and operation of the corresponding saddles and conductors for the upper set of faller bars is like that just described in connection with the lower bars 26 so that the description will not be repeated.

Minor differences in the shape of the taper of the companion cam surfaces 36 and 38 of the upper saddle l!) may be incorporated to account for the fact that gravity acts oppositely on the two sets of faller bars, but the mode of operation of the upper set of bars is like that just described for the lower set.

It will be noted that the two rearward conductors or fingers 2l and 29 are shaped differently from the forward ones, namely the curved faces found on the forward fingers need not be present. This is because, as the bars leave the return screws they are flung against the fingers and tend to straighten up against the faces of the fingers. As the bars are lifted by the S-cam they are guided so as to be gripped between the straight portions of the fingers and the vertical faces 37a of the saddles before they enter into engagement with the lead screws.

It is noted that the positiveness of the action during transfer is increased by the fact that the forward fingers 26 and 28 ride in notches 24 in the faller bars. For the same purpose the rear portions of saddles Il and I9 are necked down as at d2 to ride in the notches of the faller bars as they pass over the ends of the saddles at the rear of the machine.

Having completed a detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be apparent that the smooth high-speed action is provided with the bars firmly but resiliently guided during the transfer from one screw to the other. The bars maintain their advancing motion during initial withdrawal from the sliver and they are automatically canted or tilted so that they enter the return screws smoothly. Similarly the bars are rmly but resiliently straightened as they are transferred to the lead screws and gradually enter the sliver under action of the lead screws due to the formation The convergence of the bar supporting surfaces causes the pins to gradually enter the sliver and the edges of the bars to compress it somewhat gradually resulting in an improved action on the fibers.

We contemplate that various modifications and details of construction of the preferred embodiment may be made without departing from the essence of the invention and its mode of operation as dened in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1 In a gill box, a lower series of faller bars, lead screws of one pitch for advancing the bars with a moving sliver, return screws of a greater pitch for returning said bars in a direction opposite to the direction of sliver motion, said screws being geared together, cams turning with said screws for shifting the bars from the lead screws to the return screw at the exit end of said gill box, and cams turning with said screws for shifting the bars of each series from the return screws to the lead screws at the entrance end of said gill box, guide saddles for said bars disposed between associated lead and return screws, each saddle having a longitudinal surface for guiding said bars during advance thereof with a sliver, and spring pressed arms urged toward the ends of each saddle, the exit end of each saddle having a planar vertical surface, said arms having straight ends for holding bars against said vertical saddle surfaces, said arms having curved base portions overlying a substantial portion of said return screws, said curved vbase portions, saddle ends and return screws being relatively disposed so that a faller bar passing into said return screws has two spaced zones of engagement with each arm, and a single zone of engagement with each saddle end, whereby said faller bars are steadied by three point engagement while being canted for easy entry into said return screws.

2. In a gill box, a lower series of faller bars, each bar comprising an elongated Vmember having longitudinally extending corners, lead screws of one pitch for advancing the bars with a moving sliver, return screws of a greater pitch for returning said bars in a direction opposite to the direction of sliver motion, said screws being geared together, cams turning with said screws for shifting the bars from the lead screws to the return screw at the exit end of said gill box, and cams turning with said screws for shifting the bars of each series from the return screws to the lead screws at the entrance end of said gill box, guide saddles for said bars disposed between associated lead and return screws, each saddle having a longitudinal surface for guiding said bars during advance thereof with a sliver,

and spring pressed arms urged toward the ends of each saddle, the exit end of each saddle having a beveled planar surface extending from said longitudinal saddle surface at such an angle that a bar corner held against said first beveled surface by the associated arm moves in a direction that is the resultant of the horizontal motion im parted to the bar by the lead screw and the Vertical motion imparted thereto by the associated cam whereby said bars may be held and guided in their vertical positions without interference during initial withdrawal from a sliver, the exit end of each saddle having a planar vertical surface, said arms having straight ends for holding bars against said vertical saddle surfaces, said arms having curved base portions overlying a substantial portion of said return screws, said curved base portions, saddle ends and return screws being relatively disposed so that a faller bar passing into said return screws has two spaced zones of engagement with each arm, and a single zone of engagement with each saddle end, whereby said faller bars are steadied by three point engagement while being canted for easy entry into said return screws.

JAMES R, LONGSTREET. RAYNALDO JACQUES.

References Cited in the le 0f this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 388,739 Stake Aug. 28, 1888 610,774 Smith et al. Sept. 13, 1898 722,984 Holdsworth Mar. 17, 1903 1,497,306 Schlumberger June 10, 1924 1,565,008 Howard Dec. 8, 1925 1,598,460 Thomas et al Aug. 31, 1926 1,763,926 Gegauff June 17, 1930 2,098,781 Holdsworth Nov. 9, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 323,735 France Mar. 13, 1903 413,618 Great Britain Comp. not acc. 501,433 Germany July 2, 1930 

